The Lake Orion resident has been surrounded by friends and family as he prepares to tee it up today in his hometown tournament — the Champions Tour's inaugural Ally Challenge, at Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club in Grand Blanc.

He's also been popular with the media. During Thursday's pro-am, Gillis welcomed a Champions Tour reporter and videographer to join him for a stroll up the 18th fairway.

During the walk, there was some fascinating conversation, including stories of the time Gillis — as a 17-year-old fan — got booted from the Buick Open gallery, plus the time Gillis took a golf ball to the side of the head, and decided to drink away the pain.

For that and more, check out this 12-minute video, courtesy of the Champions Tour: